Deflector for knitting machines



Dec. 21, 1937. R. H. LAW SON ET AL 2,103,197 DEFLECTOR FOR KNITTiNG MACHINES Filed- April is, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 awn/Toms".- FflBERTHZAWJW/Z Mum/11111 117113, zyg 2PM Dec. 21, 1937. R; H. LAWSON ET AL DEFLECTOR FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed April 18, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 f YI ENTRJ ROBERTH Mia 50A;- I/K/LLMM Z. JMIJ'HJJP,

Patented Dec. 21, 1937 uNrrEo STATES REFLECTOR. FOR KNITTING MACHINES Robert H. Lawson and William L. Smith, Jr.,

Fawtucket, R. L, assignors to Hemphill Company, Central Falls, R. I., a

Massachusetts corporation of Application April 18, 1935, Serial No. 17,037 In Canada October 11, 1934 3 Claims. (Cl. 66-125) This case is concerned with a protecting device associated with yarn speed indicating mechanism for preventing oil and lint from collecting on the same. These oil and lint deflecting plates are shown in a multi-feed knitting machine of the type wherein yarn speeds are indicated by stroboscopic indicating and measuring wheels. The invention not particularly limited to such a machine, the description is to be taken as illustrative of one embodiment only.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a sectional view showing the invention as applied to a multi-feed, latch needle knitting machine having a yarn speed indicating device of the stroboscopic type;

Fig. 2 is a plan view showing relative sizes of the upper and lower protecting plates;

Fig. 3 is a sectional View showing in detail the manner in which the upper plate is attached to the machine; and

Fig. l is a sectional view showing in detail the means for attaching the lower plate to the machine.

It has been found essential for the proper operation of the stroboscopic measuring device of the type shown in Fig. l to keep the small yarn driven wheels and their bearings free of any dirt or lint such as would be likely to gather on them if they were exposed. Lint is continuously falling from the yarn supply which is located almost measuring wheels, and in cases where oil is thrown up from the latches of needles or from any other parts of the machine, this lint will stick to the wheels and their bearings, very rapidly forming a coating which will prevent free rotation of the wheels in their bearings and will also build up in the grooves of wheels under the yarn which is running in said grooves.

lil Referring to Fig. 1 we have shown enough of the machine to properly associate the invention therewith. A rotating needle cylinder is shown at l, a cylinder base at 2, the latch needles at 3. We are not limited to the use of such a device with rotary cylinder, latch needle machines since the same would be a distinct advantage if the cylinder were stationary, and in case springbeard needles are to be used, it would be essential to protect our measuring wheels from any 59 oil that might be thrown up from the pressers and/or other mechanisms. Upright posts 4 project from circular base 2 and support a central hub portion 5 by means of interconnecting elements 6. A concentric spindle l is fixed in this 6 hub 5 and carries clamped thereto a plurality of directly over the top of these,

discs 8 and 9 which mount yarn guides near their outer edges for guiding and tensioning a plurality of yarns which are being knitted by needles 3 and are being drawn from a supply, not shown. A circular piece indicated at ill is clamped 'to '6 spindle l by means of a set screw or other convenient means and carries in a plurality of forked brackets ii a number of yarn driven measuring wheels i2 equal to the yarns which are to be knitted. These measuring wheels are 10 mounted to rotate on jewel bearings so that they turn with an absolute minimum of friction thus offering no particular resistance to the yarn in its passage from the supply to needles. A U- shaped element l3 carries a yarn guide directly 15 above the axle of eachmeasuring wheel and another guide in direct alignment beneath said uring device indicates that said yarns are run- 2 ning at the proper speed. The master disc 15 is directly attached to a hub it which rotates on spindle 7 through the comparatively frictionless support of ball bearings I! and i8. These bearings are suitably enclosed to prevent dirt enter- 30 ing and also to prevent lubricant from leaking out.

A somewhat conical disc I9 having a hub 29 and an upwardly projecting flange 2! is per-. manently attached to spindle 'l directly'beneath the lower bearing is. A felt pad 22 is carried 35 within flange 2| for absorbing any oil or other lubricant that may leak out of the lower bearing closure. 7 V

An angular bracket 23 is permanently clamped to the central spindle and at its upper end 24 carries a bushing within which rotates a driving shaft 25, in turn provided with a small friction wheel 26 and its hub which are rotatable with shaft 25. Shaft 25 is driven from some suitable part of the machine and rotates master disc 15 at a predetermined speed depending upon the radial position of friction wheel 26 with regard to that master disc. This spindle and friction wheel 26 drive a master disc and function in co-. operation with the other elements to indicate the speeds of yarns being knitted all in a manner clearly described in application Ser.- -No. 663,183, filed March 28, 1933.

Referring to Fig. 1 a flat, transparent plate or disc 21 is secured to and below disc 9 and i's of I sufficient diameter to effectively prevent lint from falling on yarn driven wheels l2 or any of the mechanism which is associated therewith. While this'plate 21 may be made of any suitable material it is preferably made of some transparent substance such as slow burning celluloid which may be easily cut to shape and presents a hard, smooth surface to which dirt will not readily adhere. Referring to Figs. 2 and 3, it may be seen that disc 21 is attached to the rim of element 9 by means of spaced screws 28 or other suitable attaching means. ous knitting yarns are carried down through a plurality of guides one of which is indicated at 29, these guides projecting through corresponding holes cut in the celluloid disc.

A second protecting plate of conical shape is indicated at 30, this plate being attached to disc l9 by means of screws 3|, 32 similar to those used for attaching the first plate. This conical deflecting plate is preferably made of the same material from which the first was made and is of sufiicient diameter to extend outwardly some distance beyond yarn driven wheels I2 and their bearings, and also high enough so that oil which may be thrown up from the latches of needles which are closing or from any other source will be deflected and prevented from reaching any parts of the indicating device. Plate 30 has a rectangular hole 33 cut therein for the purpose of allowing bracket 23 to pass upwardly through the same, and also has a plurality of yarn guides 34 corresponding in number to the guides 29 and being in alignment between the respective measuring wheels and yarn guides (not shown) which deliver yarn to the needles. An annular opening between the two plates provides access to the 'yarn driven wheels and/orother elements which from falling on the same asit is deflected by disc 21-. The result is that yarn driven wheels I2 remain smooth and dry so that any lint or dirt which might enter the annular space between these deflecting plates will not adhere to the surface of said wheels and bearings to affect the proper operation of the same. In case some small amount of oil should leak out of the bearings closures at I! and I8 and get by the felt pad 22, that oil will merely flow down spindle 1 and be caught'in a receptacle or cup 35 threaded to the At intervals the Varilower end of that spindle. This will prevent oil from flowing down onto fabric whichis being taken up at the base of said machine and it is only necessary to remove cup 35 and empty oil from the same when it has become'fllled, or a piece of waste may be used for absorbing the oil which is gathered. a

The invention has been described in more or less specific terms and relative to one specific embodiment which we merely consider as an example, andwe are not to be limited except by the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a knitting machine a yarn supply and a needle bed, means positioned between the yarn supply and needle bed for accurately determining the relative feeding rates of two or more yarns including yarn driven discs rotating in jeweled bearings, a supporting member, a lint collecting member positioned on said support above said yarn driven discs and an oil-deflecting member between said discs and the needle bed projecting radially of the same a distance suflicient to prevent oil from being thrown into-the vicinity of said discs.

2. A multi-feed knitting machine having in combination a plurality of yarn supplies and a series of knitting instrumentalities for knittingsaid yarns into a fabric, yarn speed indicating means interposed between the supplies and instrumentalities including a plurality of yarn driven discs rotating in comparatively frictionless bearings, a plate beneath said supplies and above said indicating means and overhanging the said indicating means to an extent sufficientrto prevent lint falling on the same, another plate below said indicating means and projecting radially of the machine a'distance sufficient to prevent oil being thrown upwardly from theinstrumentalities to the said means and yarn guides paratively frictionless bearings, a lint collecting member above and anoil deflecting member below said means for determining the feeding rates,

for the purpose described. 7

ROBERT H. LAWSON. WILLIAM L. SMITH, JR. 

